Friday, August 8, 2014

Was yesterday really National Public Speaker Day?

Not quite. (As shown above, it was just another hot summer day). It popped up yesterday at the start of a post on THE ONE THING blog:

“Today, we recognize National Public Speaker Day, a day that celebrates an activity that has most of this blog audience collectively grimacing. In honor of this day, we dove into the backstory of one of our favorite speakers. Our very own, Jay Papasan.

Does the thought of speaking to a crowd of people put your stomach in knots? You’re not alone. 75 percent of people fear public speaking – making it one of the most common phobias around. Best-selling author and speaker, Jay Papasan, experienced it too. While we know he captivates us when he heads on stage to deliver The ONE Thing’s message, those who’ve seen him talk might be surprised to find out that Jay is a borderline introvert. Speaking to a room full of people isn’t exactly one of his natural behaviors.”

That post was titled How Jay Papasan Lined Up His Dominoes to Speak Publically with Confidence. It’s worth reading, but that first paragraph really is superfluous.

If you Google the phrase "National Public Speaker Day" you will get just four hits. That is a clue that something is amiss, and further research is required before posting. Actually yesterday instead was Professional Speakers Day. It is listed in a thick reference book for holidays called Chase’s Calendar of Events. The description says:

About Me

This blog is about public speaking. The author is Richard I. Garber, ACS, a Toastmaster. From July 2008 to June 2010 he was Vice President-Education for Capitol Club Toastmasters in Boise, Idaho. Opinions expressed on this blog are those of the author alone, and are not the official positions of Toastmasters International, etc.
Richard is retired. He has over twenty years of experience as a consultant on failure analysis (figuring out why things busted or rusted) and a Ph.D. in Metallurgical Engineering & Materials Science.
His email is r_i_garber at hotmail.com

DISCLAIMER

We don’t necessarily believe what we write, and neither should you. Information furnished to you is for topical (external) use only. This information actually may not be worth any more than what you paid for it (nothing). The author may not even have been either sane (or sober) when he wrote it down and posted it. Don’t worry, be happy.